ABSOLUT VODKA welcomes a new family member, with the launch of ABSOLUT APEACH. The new, peach flavored, premium vodka is available to consumers in the US by May 2005.

ABSOLUT APEACH has a smooth and mellow taste with a sophisticated and fruity character of peach. As with all members of the ABSOLUT VODKA family, ABSOLUT APEACH is made from all natural ingredients.

The brief to the product development team for developing ABSOLUT APEACH was as simple as it was demanding: create a product that is innovative, contemporary and original.

“I’m excited about how we, with ABSOLUT APEACH, have developed a vodka with such a distinct smooth and sensual character. The succulent and flirty zest counteracts the perception of peach-flavored drinks in general. We are confident that the launch will ensure the continuous success the ABSOLUT VODKA brand has seen within the premium flavored vodka category ever since ABSOLUT CITRON was introduced in 1988”, says Michael Persson, Senior Director Marketing at V&S Absolut Spirits.

“The flavored vodka segment continues to grow – in the US especially but the trend is global. With ABSOLUT APEACH we are thrilled to present a product into a flavor segment that is underdeveloped, and where the ABSOLUT VODKA brand is happy to lead the way,” says Andreas Berggren, Vice President Europe, Africa & Asia Pacific at V&S Absolut Spirits in Stockholm.

In keeping with the ABSOLUT VODKA family tradition, the name and packaging of the product is as unique as the spirit it contains. The ABSOLUT APEACH bottle is dressed in shades of pink-yellow-orange hues inspired by the skin of a succulent peach. The multiple shades of peach on the bottle suggest the kind of experience that ABSOLUT APEACH offers – complex and sophisticated, exciting the senses in unexpected ways.

Enjoy ABSOLUT APEACH neat, over ice, or in mixed drinks and cocktails.

Notes to editor:

• ABSOLUT APEACH comes in the following sizes: 1.75l, 1l, 750ml and 50ml

• The other members of the ABSOLUT VODKA family are: ABSOLUT RASPBERRI (introduced in 2004), ABSOLUT VANILIA (2003), ABSOLUT MANDRIN (1999), ABSOLUT KURANT (1992), ABSOLUT CITRON (1988) and ABSOLUT PEPPAR (1986)

• ABSOLUT VODKA was first launched in Sweden in 1879 by Lars Olsson Smith, the man whose portrait is featured on the medallion of every ABSOLUT VODKA bottle

• The launch of ABSOLUT CITRON in 1988 opened the segment of flavored vodkas in the US. Today, ABSOLUT CITRON is still the number 1 brand in the flavored vodka category in the US.

• All ABSOLUT VODKA, including its flavored versions, are produced at one source: Åhus in Southern Sweden

• ABSOLUT APEACH will be launched in the US in May and to the on-trade in Sweden in May 2005.

For more information, contact:
Marika Hjelm Siegwald, Director Corporate Communications, V&S Absolut Spirits, Tel: +46 8 744 74 02, cell: +46 70 377 74 02,